The exotic flower known as Amorphophallus titanum – meaning 'giant deformed penis' – has just started to bloom, only a few days later than predicted, the Botanical Gardens of Copenhagen announced today.
The plant now measures two metres in height, but it won't be able to stay up for more than a day.
It's an extremely rare phenomenon to see the spadix raised, although the last time it happened in Denmark was in 2012. It usually only happens every 15 years.
AKA corpse flower
The strange plant can reach three metres in height and grows in the tropical rainforests of the Indonesian island Sumatra. It has earned its other name, ‘corpse flower’, from the infamous foul stench it releases to attract pollinating insects.
Both the vulgar sight and the foul stench can be experienced at the Botanical Gardens, which has extended its opening hours to 8pm today, and from 10am to 6pm on Saturday and Sunday.
For those who don't get to have a look, the Botanical Gardens has made a time-lapse video of the blooming. Watch it here.
